hill. tom sherwood begins our coverage. >> this senate race is tight, but now polling has democrat tim kaine with a small lead. george allen and tim kaine locked in a tight race for nearly a year, shook hands thursday and came out, well, not fighting, but politely jabbing at each other over jobs, taxes, social and other issues. the latest polling from both fox news and the "washington post" show kaine opening up a lead of 4 to 8 points with fewer than 50 days to election day. the one-hour fairfax county chamber of commerce debate was telecast on nbc 4 and moderated by nbc's david gregory of "meet the press." former governor and former senator george allen turned nearly every question to the need for more and better jobs. >> so the job creators have the confidence, and certainty to hire again. >> reporter: tim kaine, also a former governor, turned nearly every question into criticism on

capitol hill, saying people want pulling together, not partisan bickering in washington. >> partnership over partisanship and put substce over sound bites. >> reporter: kaine also said washington must act quickly to avoid a fiscal cliff because of stalemates on the hill, saying a mix of cuts in revenues would have everyone paying a federal tax. allen said the cuts are a way to reform. they both nearly agreed on one foreign policy issue, that america should be fighting terrorism, not nation building in afghanistan. >> we've given the afghan people in their regions, in their provinces every opportunity to stand up and take control of their own destiny. >> i'll just start agreeing with that last point of george's. the sufficient can't be the guarantors of civil society in afghanistan. it has to be afghanis. >> reporter: on social issues in the role of women, allen again returned to jobs. >> women, mothers that i've talked to, whether they're married or unmarried, care about

jobs and the economy. >> reporter: kaine said allen supports on curbs of women's control of their own bodies. >> they're family issues and economic issues, and it's demeaning to suggest the social issues we don't need to spend time. we need to talk about jobs. >> again, a close race. and being watched all around the nation. doreen? >> tom sherwood, thank you. virginia is certainly playing a big role in the presidential race. but today both candidates campaigned in another battleground state. the president and mitt romney focused on florida and its large number of hispanic and senior voters. team coverage of decision 2012 continues now with steve handelsman on capitol hill. >> reporter: immigration is a huge issue down there. medicare is a big issue. social security is a big issue. a lot's on the line every time these two candidates go, and they go a lot to the sunshine state. florida is the biggest of the battleground states that will decide this election.

with the highest percentage of hispanics, 21%, and the biggest segment on medicare, 18%. obama florida volunteers see sunshine in the latest polls. the president leads mitt romney by 2%, as he came to miami today. mr. obama admitted he failed to deliver immigration reform. >> i have never waivered in my support of comprehensive immigration reform. we did put forward a dream act and was blocked, and that stands in contrast with the other candidate who has said he would veto the dream act. >> reporter: last night at the same forum, mitt romney tried to fix the fallout from the secret tape made in florida in may. romney dismissing 47% of voters. >> my campaign is about the 100% of america. and i'm concerned about them. >> reporter: romney held a rally in sarasota. >> what you have today is a president who says he can't fix

washington from the inside. it's time to get a president who understands what it takes to get america working again, and i do. >> reporter: he got help with latinos and seniors from senator marco rubio. >> mitt romney and paul ryan get it. medicare is going broeks. that's not politics, it's math. anyone who wants to leave medicare like it is is for letting it go bankrupt. >> reporter: here's more math, florida is a must-win battleground for republicans. because if barack obama takes florida, like he did last time, there is virtually no way mitt romney can get enough votes in the electoral college to take the presidency. i'm steve handelsman, news4. thank you, steve. northern virginia bureau chief julie carey was one of the panelists at the debate today. she will join us in the next half hour with her impressions of that debate. a twist in a deadly home invasion/robbery that happened last night in the 4200 block of first street southeast. a suspect tried to rob a couple

at an apartment but police say he was shot and killed by the resident. pat collins explains the connection between that suspect and a high-profile murder case two years ago. pat? >> reporter: doreen, two years ago he was involved in a high-profile robbery and murder. last night he commits another robbery, but this time, this time he ends up dead. a man linked to the murder of brian betts, a popular d.c. principal, shot and killed last night with his own gun as he was allegedly trying to commit a robbery here in southeast. 21-year-old joel johnson, gunned down inside this apartment on first street. sources tell the story this way. they say a man and a woman are walking out here. that johnson and another guy approached them and forced them inside, into the victims'

third-floor apartment. they say once inside the apartment, the victim wrestles the gun away from johnson and shoots him in the head. frightened, the woman jumps out of the third-floor window onto the grass. she was injured. she had to be taken to the hospital. scared, the second gunman drops his weapon and jumps out of the same third-floor window, and makes his escape. now we talked to a man who lives on the third floor. how many gunshots did you hear? >> enough. >> reporter: more than one? >> it was enough. >> reporter: what did you do after that? >> what i usually do. >> reporter: what's that? >> mind my business. >> reporter: back in april 2010, 42-year-old brian betts, the principal of shaw middle school, shot and killed during a robbery at his silver spring home. four young men charged. three pled guilty to murder. law enforcement sources say johnson agreed to cooperate.

the murder charges against him dropped. he pled guilty to accessory, got a reduced sentence, and recently got out of jail. three days ago, five blocks away, a man and a woman walking down this sidewalk near this apartment house, they're approached by two gunmen, forced into a top floor apartment. there he's tied up and robbed and she's sexually assaulted. police looking into the possibility that this incident may be related to what happened last night. reaction now from the betts family. we're deeply saddened that after joel johnson was given a second chance to be a productive member of society, that he chose to continue to follow a path of crime and self-destruction which ultimately resulted in his own death. live in southeast, i'm pat collins, news4.

still no word on what caused a big fire at the ymca in bowie, maryland. it happened this morning. firefighters say materials for a roofing project caught fire. that caused significant water and smoke damage to the building. activities were canceled today. but ynca officials say most of the damage was done to the exterior of the building. the kids could return as early as tomorrow. officials are trying to figure out if that fire might have been intentionally set. tonight, three of maryland's top leaders got together in support of question 7. question 7 is the ballot issue in november that would expand gambling in the state. county executives from prince george's, montgomery and howard counties talked about the money and jobs that a new casino would generate. as chris gordon reports now, strong words for those urging residents to vote no on question 7. >> make no ake,mist this is about maryland versus west

virginia. >> reporter: three local leaders who support question 7 say it's come down to this. >> i think if you look who's running the ads, spending the money, if they're trying to protect it from competition coming from maryland. >> reporter: penn national which owns rosecroft raceway is supporting the ads urging a no vote on 7. penn national also owns hollywood casinos in charlestown, west virginia, and perryville, maryland. the montgomery, prince george's and howard county executives are urging maryland voters to approve table games and building a casino at national harbor, saying it will mean thousands of new jobs, and $200 million in revenue for the state for education. >> what happens if we don't get that $200 million? >> it means the local communities will be on the stake for part of that. >> frankly, i didn't like the fact that an out-of-state interest is putting $5.5 million into a campaign telling marylanders how to vote. >> check the facts for yourself, vote no on question 7.

>> reporter: news4 today received a statement from the group on vote no saying their promises of new jobs and increased education funding to be blatantly misleading. millions of dollars are being spent on ads by both sides. >> i will be voting for it. because in the hopes that they will bring more jobs to maryland. particularly prince george's county. >> i would definitely be against it. i think it will create issues and problems in the area. >> reporter: voters will decide the gambling issue on election day. chris gordon, news4. today marks one year since the repeal of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy, and a new study finds the repeal has not had a negative impact on the military. "don't ask, don't tell" forced thousands of gay and lesbian soldiers from being discharged. the military's readiness,

recruitment and morale they say are virtually unchanged from a year ago, and has not been an increase in assault and harassment cases as critics predicted. david hall said he was forced out of the military and there's no going back now. >> i think the american people would look at anyone that tried to bri the "don't ask, don't tell" back is crazy. it makes no sense. >> 14,000 service members were discharged under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. another cool fall-like afternoon out there today. doug kammerer down at nationals park enjoying it all. doug? >> that's why they call them the boys of fall. out here right now, a beautiful, beautiful night for baseball. we're talking about temperatures in the low 70s. getting into the upper 60s, probably during the game tonight. it will be a little bit of a chill. once again, as it has been the last couple of days. as you look at temperatures, we're currently sitting at the

74-degree mark. that's where we're going to be for the next hour or so. temperatures slowly falling into the upper 60s. winds right now out of the southeast at about 9 miles an hour. the temperatures around the rest of the region, currently sitting in the 70s across much of the area. we're starting to see some areas get down into the upper 60s. temperatures 72 at gaithersburg. through the rest of tonight and early tomorrow, to southeast d.c., looking at temperatures falling down to about 65 at 11:00. temperatures tomorrow morning about 59 degrees. yes, the cool air is here. and so are we. we'll be here throughout the game. can't wait. >> coming up, approaching wildfires are so dangerous, some people are being told to stay indoors. the fear of muslim backlash and reaction to a cartoon is mounting in france. now, the publisher admits the timing of the cartoon's release is no coincidence. phony iphones were so good, apple had to be called in to

help with the investigation in

you're watching news4 at # clock. u.s. ambassador to libya chris stevens thought he was on an al qaeda hit list before his death, according to a cnn report out today. stevens reportedly worried about a rise in islamic extremism in libya. stevens and three other americans died in an attack on the u.s. embassy there last week. protesters were angry over a movie mocking the prophet muhammad. u.s. officials are investigating whether the attack was planned in advance. deputy secretary of state william burns is attending a memorial service for stevens tonight. that's happening in tripoli. meantime, france is closing embassies and schools in 20 countries. french leaders are afraid of violent protests over cartoons mocking the prophet muhammad. the magazine's publisher says it's all about free speech. but as nbc's michelle kosinski reports the cartoons angered some already fired up over an

anti-islam movie. >> reporter: today there was a protest outside the french embassy in tehran. and here in paris. no incidents, although yesterday someone threw a grenade into a kosher grocery in a suburb, causing some minor injuries. it's not really clear if that was connected to this. france, though, acted immediately, already closing some schools. tomorrow plans to close embassies and cultural centers in 20 countries. you know, the publisher of these cartoo cartoons, some of which show the prophet muhammad naked, chose the timing of this for a reason, right after the protests and murders last week over the anti-islamic film and after the legal backlash over photos of the duchess of cambridge. they say this is about freedom of speech, standing up to threats against them, and standing up against groups that would govern through fear. what's interesting now, though, is two groups had planned protests here in paris for this

saturday. but their permits to do so were denied. now this magazine that published the cartoons saying that's not right, they ought to have the right to protest, just like we have the right to publish our cartoons. back to you. fast-moving wildfires are threatening several communities in the central part of washington state. hundreds of people are out of their homes tonight. others are told to remain inside their homes, because of potentially dangerous air. one of those fires tripled in size today to nearly 50 square miles. it's only 4% contained, we're told. a 27-mile stretch of a highway is closed. dry brush is making it more difficult for firefighters to fight the flames. those fires thought to be sparked by lightning. back out to nats park, where doug is live with our weather forecast. you just couldn't resist, huh, doug? >> reporter: i've got to be honest with you, doreen, i'm coming into work today thinking to myself, what are we going to

thauk about, the weather is too perfect. they said i needed to have somebody with me. so carol maloney, she's going to be on the show a little bit later. i actually snuck in behind her. don't tell anybody. but we're here. i'll tell you what, guys, a beautiful night for baseball. come on out tonight. obviously it's going to be a good one. it would be quite amazing for this city to clinch a play-off spot. the weather, everybody excited about a beautiful night, too. a lot of people saying how great it's been. 75 degrees the high temperature after a low this morning of 54. so another day below average. but i don't think anybody's going to be complaining out there. as far as the temperatures go out there right now, this was, by the way, the coolest day we've seen since the 12th. let's show you our new camera down at the gaylord national hotel. a beautiful camera down here towards national harbor. we're going to be moving this camera all around. we're going to see all the way

around the potomac river down towards national harbor. a new camera we have at nbc 4. now, as far as temperatures are concerned right now, 74 degrees. we're looking at temperatures that are going to continue to fall throughout the rest of the evening. so you may need a jacket if you're head down to the game. but right now, comfortable. 72 out towards annapolis. manassas coming in at 72 degrees. as far as what we're going to be seeing rainwise, no rain right now, anywhere across the region. that will change, though, by saturday night. i'm not expecting a lot of rain. but there could be a chance of severe weather. here's the satellite and radar together. you notice a few clouds throughout the day today, we'll see those clouds begin to clear this evening. look for mostly clear skies overnight and most likely into tomorrow morning. i do expect to see a few more clouds tomorrow. but quite nice, high pressure dominating with all that sunshine. we'll see a little bit of a front just to our north and west during the day tomorrow. most of the shower activity with that front will stay well to our north and west.

but could clip our mountainous areas in towards west virginia and western maryland. then on saturday, here comes that next front. this will be a strong front. it will have a chance for severe weather on saturday but it's going to be a very sharp line. that's going to come through very, very quickly. so anything that does happen will move on through here. that's good news there. the nats, by the way, play at 1:00 on saturday against the brewers. that game should not have any problem getting in. as far as temperatures this evening, mostly clear skies. and literally just great out here. 65 to 71 degrees. if you're coming down to the nats park, this is what you can expect down here as you make your way in around the area. temperatures will be in the 60s for the most part. but 70 at game time. a great evening for baseball. but they will be falling to around the 64-degree mark by the time the game is over. so you may need that jacket. tomorrow morning waking up to cool numbers again. 48 in the suburbs, to about 59 in the city. mostly clear. continued cool. and a great morning. tomorrow afternoon, mixture of

sun and clouds. nice and warm. we'll call it a fantastic friday. as we move through the weekend, most of the day on saturday should be fine. then we'll see a chance for those thunderstorms to come in late in the afternoon. that will send in more cool air, even cooler air, as a matter of fact. i think some areas sunday will be in the 60s all day long. same with monday. you may wake up, some of the coldest areas monday morning may wake up to temperatures m the upper 30s. so guys, we're definitely going to see cold air, or at least cool air for this time of the year move in. game time, just about 40 minutes away. >> all right. thank you, doug. coming up, a huge win in court for a man who says microwave popcorn made him ill. we now know what really shut down the rails in part of virginia. and stranded over 1,000

commuters. coming up in sports, the nationals looking to clinch that play-off spot. we're going to be live down in nationals park. the orioles not getting muc

in less than 24 hours, the highly anticipated iphone 5 will hit store shelves across america. there are already people waiting in line in chicago, and even at some stores in our area. people are basically living on the street outside of the apple stores so they can secure their place in line and have a better chance of snagging the fastest and thinnest iphone yeflt yet. a father/son duo from prince

george's is in a scam. >> they're accused of selling counterfeit iphones in a parking lot. derrick ward has more on the devices that look like the real thing. >> reporter: indeed, jim. this is the real thing. what would you do to get one? behind me you see people who will line up to be the first in line when the new iphone is released tomorrow. now, we also talked to some folks in prince george's county, or heard about some folks in prince george's county who would buy one from not necessarily an apple dealer on authorized dealer. looks like a deal that seemed too good to pass up. but you probably know where this is going, because if something seems too good to be true, it usually is. the iphone, a must-have device where so many these days -- >> for me personally, it changed how i work and do my school. all the apple devices work so well together. i've used an ipod before it was called ipod. >> reporter: a father and son team tried to cash in on that

demand. i'm only holding up one iphone, one is real, one isn't. hard to tell at first glance, isn't it. that's what the counterfeiters are counting on. harold and daniel parker were arrested on december 12th after police were tipped off about two men selling iphones in the parking lot in a shopping center. >> our team went up there, in an undercover capacity. the guys that were selling the phones approached us and tried to sell us these phones that i have here now. >> reporter: at first, police thought they may have been stolen phones being sold. the packaging and accessories looked real. that is, until the folks at apple told them what they really were. >> $20 worth of plastic and junk. >> reporter: people were trying to get the phones activated and that's when they discovered they were duped. this customer who's on her third iphone is one of those folks who probably couldn't be fooled. she was first in line here in

bethesda to get the latest model. >> people here will help you set up. it's more of a perm experience. i would personally never, ever buy it in a parking lot. >> reporter: now, prince george's county police say this is a very complicated case and are still putting it together. they don't know quite where the phony iphones were manufactured. they do know that the father and son team is facing a series of charges, including copyright infringement, and vending without a license and felony theft. they'll check with the prosecutor's office to see if there are additional charges these two of face. live in bethesda, derrick ward, news4. a twist in a deadly home invasion robbery overnight. 21-year-old joel johnson was killed last night when police say a robbery victim wrestled johns johnson's gun away from him and shot him. he was charged in the killing of brian betts in 2010. he cooperated with the police